Aftermath
by Falconpawnch7
Summary: After the final battle between Scourge and the Suppression Squad, Sonic, Tails, Amy, and Knuckles return home to everyone, only to find Knuckles has some shocking news.
1. Bon Voyage

Aftermath

Part 1: Bon Voyage

"We have finally returned home." A tired Sonic the Hedgehog proclaimed. It had been a rough time fighting their Anti's in Moebius, but they had all prevailed. As he stepped away from the portal he saw, that it had dropped them near Vanilla's house. He looked back and saw the others coming through. Tails was nursing a nasty gash on his arm, given to him by his doppelganger, Miles.

"I never want to go back there again." Tails said heading towards the house to get some medical attention.

"And hopefully we never will have to. Zonic said he could handle it." Sonic said with obvious relief. _That was the scariest fight of my life. Scourge was brutal, and didn't pull any punches. Metal Sonic might know all my moves, but Scourge knew how I think._ Sonic shuddered at the thought.

"Ah, we've been dropped off in the perfect place. These two need help now." Knuckles said carrying Amy out of the portal. His healing factor had reached its limit fighting O'Knux and he had a cut on his chest that he had crudely sewn together. Amy was unconscious from her fight with Rosy.

"I'll take Amy, you need to rest." Sonic said taking Amy. She weighed him down, but he had moved heavier. He heard Knuckles grunt behind him.

"What about you? You had to fight one of the most dangerous criminals in the multiverse. If I need rest you need a vacation." Knuckles reached to take Amy from Sonic but he was already at the door when Vanilla opened it.

"Oh dear! Come in, all of you. We've been worried sick about you!" She took Amy and placed her on a couch in the sitting room. "Knuckles sit down and I'll fix those stiches."

The two of them complied with the concerned woman. Knuckles grunted as Vanilla took out his stiches and redid them. Sonic sat in a chair next to Amy and brushed her hair out of her face. Just then he heard the door open.

"Vanilla, are they back yet? Julie is worried sick about them." Vector called from the doorway.

"Yes they are. Tell Julie that she should come down here right-!"  
Vanilla started before Knuckles spoke.

"Vector, bring everyone down here. I need to speak with them all." He looked serious. An affirmative grunt came from Vector and the door closed. Knuckles sat back and closed his eyes.

Sonic wondered for a moment what Knuckles was up to before shrugging and deciding it had nothing to do with him went to help Vanilla get supplies.

Within no time others showed up to check on the Heroes. Maria, Shadow, Omega and Rouge were the first to show up. Rouge had gone to help with Amy, and Shadow congratulated Tails on his first big battle scar. Omega was sitting with Knuckles, as the latter stared at the door, waiting for Vector to come back. Maria sat next to Sonic and gave him a wet towel.

"Here, I heard you had a rough time." She looked at the floor like she knew something he didn't.

Sonic ignored this and sighed. "Well, I don't know if I had it the hardest. Just look at Amy."

Maria looked over at Amy and said, "Well, you haven't had any treatment. And you are the one that fought Scourge." She had a guilty look in her eye.

"What's wrong with you Maria? You look like you have something bad to say." Sonic looked at her but she shook her head.

"You'll find out soon." She stood up and walked away before he could ask anything else.

The door slammed open and Julie-Su ran in followed by the Chaotix. She slapped Knuckles with an angry look in her eyes. "IDIOT! Going into Enemy territory with only three people for backup! What were you thinking?!"

Knuckles moved his jaw as if to make sure it still worked and spoke. "I thought we could handle it. Obviously I was partially wrong." He motioned to a chair. "Sit. We can discuss what happened later. Right now I have an important announcement to make. Is Amy awake?"

"Now she is. She should be fine in a few minutes." Vanilla said looking over at Amy who was rubbing her arm.

"Good. I want everyone who fought Scourge and his cronies to hear this. Vanilla, normally I'd ask you to leave, but you are entitled to hear this as much as anyone else here." Knuckles turned to face the center of the room.

Sonic watched him closely. If he knew anything about Knuckles, this would be about how they weren't strong enough then, and that they should add more training time to their normal lives. "Go on then Knux, let's hear this spiel for the hundredth time."

Knuckles smirked and shook his head. "I hate to disappoint you, but I'm not going to end this the way you want. We got our asses handed to us back there, we scraped that victory. If we have trouble fighting them, what happens if someone stronger comes along? Answer, we die. That is a problem I don't think anyone wants to deal with right now. The solution is simple, but I don't think you'll like it. Intense, and rigorous training. Not the training I always tell you to do in your free time, but hard training. And in order for some of us to find that, we need to leave Mobius."

Sonic stared at him for a second before responding. "What? 'Some of us'? What does that mean?" He looked from face to face and saw the Chaotix looking away from him. It all clicked together. "You mean…"

Knuckles nodded. "We're leaving. For at least 5 years. I'm taking the Master Emerald with us, and we're going off planet to train our bodies in a heavier gravity. When we return, this will be where we all meet up. But before we even found our destination, we made sure that the rest of you had one as well. Amy, we found you a teacher in the mountains south of the Dragon Kingdom. Tails, the Mobian Air Force has agreed to teach you all they can even though you're a minor. Shadow, Maria, you already know where to go. Omega, there is a Data Base in Future City with all the information you need. Rouge, fifteen miles east of Sand Blast is an oasis where your teacher waits. And Sonic, your headmaster will be expecting you, do not disappoint him." He stood and headed towards the door. "Vector, is the stuff outside?"

Vector nodded and along with the other Chaotix stood to follow Knuckles. "Well, this is goodbye for now guys. I'll miss you all, but not as much as you Vanilla." Vector said romantically.

Julie kicked him forward. "Not now you walking purse. We don't want an emotional goodbye, that would make them miss us more." She followed Knuckles out the door and said, "Though five years is a long time to wait."

Sonic stood there, dumbstruck. The door closed behind Espio and there was a bright flash as a portal opened then closed minutes later. "They're gone…" was all he could say. The others looked at him, wondering what he was going to say. At last he had gathered up all the information, gone over it, and regained himself. "Well, you all heard him. If arrangements were made for us, then we should all go out and fulfill them. I shall see you all back here in 5 years time." He stood and walked to the door, the others following behind him. Outside they all lined up facing in different directions. Tails set off first, then Shadow and Maria, then Rouge, and Omega. At last only he and Amy remained.

"Sonic, are you sure about this?" Amy asked, still looking a little fatigued.

He shook his head. "No, but I don't want Knuckles to be right about stronger people. It's my sworn duty to protect Mobius from any threat that comes against it. And if one of you were to die while I was doing that I could never live with myself. Please, keep in touch. I'll be sure to visit if I can, no one can keep my in one place for long." He gave her a hug and walked off towards his destination.

Amy turned towards hers before turning slightly to Sonic. "Bon Voyage Sonic, I will see you soon."

TO BE CONTINUED


	2. Towards the Light

Aftermath

Part 2: Towards the Light

Sonic the Hedgehog stood outside the Headmasters office, wondering why Knuckles had sent him here for training. _Perhaps he thinks I need to sharpen my wits, or he might be subtly insulting me, saying I'm stupid._ His wondering continued as the door opened and the Headmaster stood in front of him.

The Headmaster was an old Hornbill, built like an officer in the Marines, but slightly bent, an ebony cane in his left hand. He wore a three piece crème suit, with a powder blue handkerchief in the breast pocket. His eyes were green, with a wise look to them. He welcomed Sonic inside with a wave of his hand. "I've been expecting you Sonic, especially after what your friend told me."

"About that sir, how long was Knuckles planning this?" Sonic said sitting in a wooden chair.

The Headmaster sat in his chair and looked at Sonic appraisingly. "Four weeks now, according to him, but I think he always wanted to do something like this, just in case something went wrong." He pulled out a picture from his desk drawer and handed it to Sonic. "Before I say anything, I want you to look at that."

Sonic looked down at the picture. It was of a group of people, some he had never seen before, but two he had. "You know my Uncle Chuck?" He said with a hint of surprise.

The Headmaster nodded and leaned over. "This was taken about 25 years ago, when we were all still young. That's me, your Uncle, Rusty from the Scrap Yard, you might know him, boy has he changed." The man he was pointing to had clean slick fur with an Army Jacket neatly buttoned up. "We sure loosened him up. That Owl is Harvey Who, then there's old One Eyed Mike, next to William O'Malley, the orange cat above your Uncle." The Headmaster leaned back into his chair, having named everyone.

"Sir, why did you show me this?" Sonic said looking up from the picture. He set it on the desk as the Headmaster chuckled.

"I showed you this little piece of history because you needed a pick me up. My job is to ensure you aren't easily fazed, to ensure you can stand up to hardships, and above all, to make sure you stay alive. Your first task is simple. There is a flower that blooms at the top of Mt. Mobius. It is blue, and its stem is covered in red thorns. Bring back a single blossom without breaking the stem." He leaned back in his chair and looked at his watch. "The task begins now."

Sonic rushed out the door, through the halls, through the door leading outside and made a hard right towards the mountain. Once at the top he saw the flowers. They each had two or three blossoms on them. "What the? How am I supposed to find one in time?!" Sonic began frantically searching for a few seconds before giving up. He pulled one blossom of a two blossom plant and grabbed the stem at the bottom where there were no thorns. He pulled it up and ran back. "Got it! How was my time?"

The Headmaster looked at him. "There was no time limit. Let me see the flower." He took it from Sonic's hand and examined it. "This stem is damaged, you pulled a blossom off. Do it again. But this time, do it right." He placed the flower in the trash and wrote something down.

"Do it right, he says." Sonic grumbled as he returned to the top of the mountain. "How does one do it right?" He scanned the flowers for the elusive one blossom for what felt like hours. His eyes got tired and the flowers started to merge together in his eyes. An hour later he heard a voice behind him.

"Having trouble?" The headmaster was there. A parka wrapped around him, another under his arm. "Here, put this on." He said handing Sonic the coat.

"I looked all over, and I didn't see any one blossom flowers anywhere!" Sonic said slipping the Parka on.

"That is because you haven't been looking hard enough. Allow me to demonstrate." He moved towards the patch, bent down on his knees and moved two three blossoms aside. The thorns poked into his hands and he began bleeding. "Come look here Sonic, tell me what these two blooms were hiding."

Sonic walked over and peered where the Headmaster had indicated. There sitting in the ground, having been sheltered from view, was a one blossom flower. "But, your hand."

"One must be prepared to get hurt if one wishes to protect others. The flowers with one blossom only have one blossom because they have been shaded from the life giving sun. I asked you to bring me a one blossom so that it may be preserved, and one day grow into a two, or three blossom." He said scooping the tiny flower out of the soft earth and placing it in a more open area. "Do you understand my first lesson?"

Sonic thought about it before nodding. "Yes sir, I do." He moved to the patch and moving aside some flowers, getting pricked in the process, he scooped out another one blossom. "In order to protect others, I need to be prepared to face physical and emotional hardships. You're going to show me how, aren't you?"

The Headmaster nodded. "That, and so much more."

Tails stood tall outside the Air Force base, looking in awe at the planes they had. _It's like they knew I was coming and set their best out for me to see!_

A woman in uniform came up to him. "Miles Prower, my name is Captain Sharon Squall, your teacher for the next five years." She was a tall tigress, with a well-built frame and blonde hair tied in a ponytail. "Follow me and I shall show you your quarters. Then we shall get to work."

Tails nodded and followed her. "Yes Ma'am. But if you don't mind, call me Tails."

She pulled out a pen and made a note on her clipboard. "Right, now please understand, you will be put to the test out here, and I am not here to Molly-Coddle you. I'll concede to calling you Tails, but don't think that means special treatment." She turned a corner and he saw her give a smirk and a wink.

He looked behind him and saw no one. _This is gonna be a long five years, I can tell._

After she had shown him his quarters, the spare room of hers of course, Captain Squall took him to the gymnasium. She set out a few weights and asked him to lift them one at a time. "In order to get an idea of what I'm dealing with. While it's true you can fly while carrying weights, that's your unique tail muscle doing the work. Your arms and legs are what we're here to develop. So go ahead and show me what you can do."

Tails walked over to the weights, they were marked in increments of ten, starting at 10 pounds and ending at 50. He picked up the ten pound no problem. But by the 30 pound he was starting to struggle. He could barely lift it.

"That's good. Set it down and come over here. We'll make a schedule." She pulled a paper out of a rack behind her and set it on her clipboard. "Now this year is basics, so I'll put your workout first. After that you will have basic training, then maintenance training, then lunch. Your Afternoon will have another workout, then a study period. Dinner will follow and you will report to quarters after that. There we shall have private lessons. You should bunk at around 9. That sound good?"

Tails nodded, "I suppose so, but what are the private lessons?" He looked at her, her face still down looking at her clipboard.

She smiled and looked up at him. "In a fight, an opponent's body speaks volumes about his style, and future moves. It's my job to show you how to read it."

After Dinner a sore Tails returned to Captain Squall's residence. He saw her setting up a chart and a desk. "Am I early?" He asked confused as to why she was just now setting up.

"No. I was held up at a hearin-! Meeting! Just a meeting. Nothing you need to worry about Private. Just, sit down and I'll be with you in a moment." She looked like she had been upset by something, and her eyes were red.

Tails looked at her. "Why were you at a hearing? Did someone do something wrong?"

She sighed and turned away. "Apparently, returning the favor for someone saving your life is against the rules. I'm on probation. I'm not allowed to oversee any Privates except you for 10 years. Which is basically a nice way of saying when you're gone, I'm being discharged. 13 years of loyal service to Mobius doesn't mean shit apparently!" She was getting angry. The paper she had been holding was being torn apart.

"I'm sorry… I didn't know I'd be causing trouble…" Tails said with a bit of remorse.

She turned to him and took a deep breath. "No, no. It's not your fault. It's those idiots on the board of justice. I swear that they only got there because they bribed the council. Just, sit, please. I'll teach you until these five years are up, then I'll find a new path. Perhaps I could go out to the stars, and find that planet my father went to." She looked out the window longingly before shaking her head. "But, let's focus on the now shall we?"

The Lesson went well and at 8:50 she let him go and take a shower. As he headed to the bathroom he turned back and spoke. "Captain, if it's your dream to go where your father went, then I will help you realize it. I swear it."

She looked at him with eyes that seemed like they wanted to cry. She smiled and shook her head. "Well, if you really want to, I'm in no position to stop you. Good Night Private Tails."

Amy had no problems finding the mountains she was looking for. Her teacher was waiting for her at the bottom. "You're early Miss Rose. I have only just started watering my crops." The Teacher was a Pika woman, about 31, wearing a tattered blue dress, and a golden yellow sash. "You may call me Miss Ling. We will begin after I water my crops." She gestured to a small patch of dirt with a few plants growing out of it.

"What are you growing?" Amy asked, intrigued. She had never seen anything like them before.

"Just a few herbs for your friend Knuckles. You should have seen his face when he saw that I could grow them. They take six years to mature you know. I planted this crop last summer. They should be done when he gets back." She watered them and turned to Amy. "You probably want to know more than that don't you?"

Amy nodded. "Yes Miss Ling, I would. What are they called, and what can they do?"

Miss Ling chuckled and set her watering can down. "If you want to find out, then you will have to beat me. Come with me, bring that Hammer you're famous for."

They were in a large grove, the wind calmly blew the grass around them, and a Sakura Tree covered in blossoms was shaking in the breeze. Amy had her hammer out and ready. "Are you sure about this Miss Ling?"

Miss Land was unarmed, and standing plainly in between Amy and the tree. "I am quite sure Miss Rose, just start whenever you are ready." She made no move to get in a defensive stance and stared at Amy.

Amy shrugged. _I won't hit her hard, just enough to tap her._ She ran forward and raised her hammer. She brought it down in a diagonal arc, aiming for Miss Ling's shoulder.

CLANG!

Amy's jaw dropped. Miss Ling's opposite arm had moved so fast that she had not seen it. She was clutching Amy's hammer so tight that she couldn't move it.

"So predictable. Miss Rose, why did you hold back?" Miss Ling waited for an answer, looking straight ahead, like Amy wasn't even there.

"I didn't want to hurt you Miss Ling." Amy answered honestly.

Miss Ling clicked her tounge. "Miss Rose, do you honestly believe that I would tell you to hit me if I couldn't take it?" She threw off her dress and sash, revealing a complex suit of armor underneath. "When one catches the eyes of one powerful individual, others are bound to look also. If you are not prepared, then you will die. My assignment is to make you stronger, enough so that if one eye falls on you, others will be too afraid to interfere. You will defeat me one day, not today, maybe not even in five years, but on that day you will know why I am your teacher, and not any other warrior."

And so the training continued for five years, each of them becoming even stronger. There were hardships, toils, struggles, and even death, but in the end, each of them came out on top.

"Sonic, you have done me proud. No, not just me, but everyone out there counting on you. Go now, and show the world what you can do."

"Thank you for the past 5 years Tails. I will never forget you, and all you've done for me. If you ever need my help, I will be with my father, on the planet Gian. Good Luck, and God Speed.

"You have done it Miss Rose, after five years, you have defeated me. Come over here and I will show you what these herbs are. They are a powerful stamina booster. The Kozawanaka plant. Knuckles plans to use this in order to bring back a friend he lost many years ago. Eh? Why was I your teacher? Well, I am a friend of the Guardian, and you are as well. I was just saying that it was important to motivate you. Good Luck on this adventure we call life, I may see you again, I may not. But I do hope that you remember your lessons."

"It's been five years Knuckles, you better be back soon, I have some neat new tricks to show you." Sonic said looking out over Mobius from the peak of Mt. Mobius.

"Five years is far too much time to spend on Military Knowledge. I can't wait to get back to my workshop. Perhaps a stop at the library first though." Tails said on his way to Vanillas.

"Sonic, I've become stronger. I hope that together, we will be able to head towards the light of a bright future." Amy said as she entered Vanilla's front door.

TO BE CONCLUDED


	3. Fight Together

Aftermath

Part 3: Fight Together

5 years had passed since the heroes parted ways, and in that time each of them had grown stronger. Sonic the Hedgehog was the first to get back to the promised meeting place, Vanilla's house, and was inside having a conversation with her.

"I didn't see you as one to dye your hair Sonic, I always figured you'd keep it the way it was." Vanilla said eyeing Sonic with a friendly smile.

Sonic gave a chuckle and shrugged. "I actually didn't dye it, they just appeared one day, and I couldn't get rid of them." Sonic had changed very little in five years. Aside from the obvious change in height, he had developed green rings around his spines. He also seemed more content with waiting for the others to get there, as instead of tapping his foot and pacing all over he was smiling and sitting with a cup of tea next to him.

Vanilla looked a little confused but continued on while Sonic took a sip of his tea. "Well I'm glad to see you again. You haven't come over in 2 years, I was starting to worry."

Sonic set his tea down and grimaced. He just realized how much he hated tea. He pushed the cup away from him and spoke. "Yeah, The Headmaster took me out into the Mountains for two years to practice some advanced combat and other things. It was hard at times, but eventually I got the hang of it."

Vanilla put her hand to her mouth. "I see. You didn't get hurt up there did you?"

Sonic shook his head. "Nope, I was in no danger up there. The only time I was at risk was the year prior when I was still fighting Eggman. That reminds me though… who kept the fat man at bay while I was away? I need to thank them."

Vanilla had breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, I believe it was your Uncle that rallied a militia to keep Robotnik's forces back. I had other things to worry about, what with all the injured people that the hospital couldn't take in. I swear if it wasn't for the fact that G.U.N stepped in someone would've done something foolhardy and died." She did not sound very pleased.

Sonic nodded slowly as to not upset her more. He was going to say something but the doorbell rang. _Thank you whoever's at the door._ He thought to himself as he got up. "I'll get it."

Vanilla waved him down. "No, no. You are the guest here, I will get the door." She walked into the hallway and opened the door. "Amy Rose, is that you?" She said when she saw who it was.

Amy had grown her hair out, and was wearing a skin tight suit. "Sorry Vanilla, I didn't have time to change into any more appropriate clothes. I have to tell Sonic something." She followed Vanilla into the sitting room and upon seeing Sonic ran over and hugged him. "SONIC! I thought I would be the first one back since I finished a week early."

Sonic smiled and tapped her shoulder, "While I appreciate the hug, don't you have something you want to say?"

Amy's eyes shot open and she ended the hug. "Right! Sonic, I have some news. Tails just sent word that he would be running a little late. He stopped at a Library in Big Cityopolis. He told me to tell you that he would be bringing a special book with him. I don't know what he meant by that though." She sat down next to him, "Do you have any ideas?"

Sonic shook his head as the door opened and Shadow, Maria, and Omega came in. "Rouge not with you?"

Omega turned to him. "AGENT ROUGE IS GATHERING INTEL AT THE CURRENT TIME MEATBAG. DO NOT QUESTION THE MATTER FURTHER AS IT IS CLASSIFIED." He had a new paint job, and seemed to grunt as he turned away from him.

Shadow shook his head. He had grown a small beard and was dressed in a torn GUN jean jacket and jeans with a hole in the left knee. He was wearing new gloves along with his inhibitor rings. He sat down next to Maria who was wearing a Gymnastic Uniform with a large M on it. "He's been like that all day. I think he's missed her."

Omega made a noise, "AGENT SHADOW YOU ARE ADVISED TO NOT SPEAK OF THIS MATTER ANY FURTHER."

Shadow chuckled. "See?"

Sonic nodded and turned to Shadow. "How did it go for you?"

Shadow turned to look at him. "Training? Naturally it was no problem. What about you."

Sonic gave him a challenging grin. "Fine. I had no trouble at all."

Amy spoke up, "Alright boys, this is no time for a pissing contest. Let's just have a civil conversation until the others arrive."

At that moment the door burst open and Saffron flew in. She had barely changed in five years, having slightly longer hair and a red spot on her head. "Guys! Something went wrong in the portal! The others were flung out across the country!"

Shadow stood up fast, "What does this mean?"

Saffron took a breath, "It means that they are going to get in trouble! Julie has Laura with her, Knuckles has the Master Emerald, and who knows what mischief Vector could land himself in!"

Sonic spoke up, "Saffron, surely they won't do anything to get in trouble. They'll just find their way back here."

Saffron shook her head. "No they won't! When we left Mobodoon they were all itching for a fight. And on top of that, I overheard someone where I landed. He said that Robotnik's sent his robot warriors to find them all!"

Amy spoke next, "Surely the level headed Espio and Charmy will find their way here with no problem. The others are more than able to take on Eggmans flunkies."

Saffron shook her head even harder, "Not flunkies! Full Sized Mechs! Powered by Chaos Emeralds, and made of indestructible metal!"

Sonic got to his feet, "If that's true then we have to go help them. Shadow, Amy, you two try to find Vector and Julie. I'll get Espio. Knuckles will have to wait. Charmy will find his way back here, I'm sure of it. Saffron you wait here. Maria, if he isn't back soon go look for him. Let's get going!"

The bar was cold and unwelcoming, but she went in anyways. Covered in a large cloak she took a seat at the bar next to a similarly dressed male. He made no motion towards her, just sat with his arms folded. She turned her attention to the bar tender. "Give me something light, I'm not in the drinking mood today." She said.

The bartender, a gecko, nodded and poured her a small glass of light beer. He gave it to her and pulled up a bottle of Whisky. "Here you are sir. Would you like a glass with that?"

The stranger shook his head and the bartender sat the bottle in front of him.

A loud racket came from outside, and a meek voice approached the door "Jack'll kill us if we don't find that thief!"

Another voice sounded, further away from the door but still close. "Don't you think I know that Jones?! Let's just ask Bluto if he's seen anything then move on.

The woman started sweating. _CRAP! How did they catch my trail?_ She took a sip of her drink and tried to look innocent.

Two men burst in the door, a desert pack rat with a scared look in his eye, and a large Mountain Lion with a scowling face. The bartender straightened at the sight of him. "Bluto. Long time no see."

Bluto, the bartender spoke with a gulp. "Chuck… what brings you out this far from Sand Blast?"

Chuck, the lion, gave him a look. "We don't have time for pleasantries Bluto. I need you to tell me if you've seen a Bat running around here. She's stolen a large amount of money from our boss."

The woman started to get up but Jones grabbed her. "Where do you think you're going? We're gonna question you next!" He turned her around and put his hand to her back to direct her back to her seat, then froze. "Wings? Chuck! I think this is her!"

Chuck turned and ripped the cloak off. "Well what do you know? It is you, Rouge."

Rouge stood there, caught. She was dressed in a spin on her old outfit, but with a headdress and belt she received from her teacher. "Chuck, I haven't seen you since I ran with your little gang 7 years ago. You're working for the Sand Blasters now I see."

Chuck didn't smile. "Like I told Bluto, I have no time for pleasantries. You're coming with me!" He grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards him. He turned only to find the Stranger standing before him the bottle of whisky empty on the bar.

The stranger made a slight motion before speaking. "Didn't mommy tell you that it's not nice to abuse women?" His voice was gravely and unamused, but surprisingly not slurred considering how much whisky he had just drank.

Chuck was getting annoyed, "Outta my way you drunken idiot!" He punched at the stranger only to have his fist grabbed by him.

The stranger clicked his tongue. "Guess I'll just have to teach you a lesson." He twisted Chucks arm until it made loud cracking noises.

Chuck screamed in pain. "WHAT THE HELL?! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING THAT TO ME?!"

The stranger clicked his tongue again. "I'm the Guardian." He let go of Chucks arm and removed his hood. Sure enough, it was Knuckles. He had grown a small black goatee in the time he was away. "And if you know what's good for you, you'll stay down." He turned his attention to Rouge. "What are you doing out here?"

Rouge was shocked at his sudden question. "I'm on assignment! What are you doing out here?!"

Knuckles turned and started walking out the door. "Getting a drink what else?"

She followed him, angry at his sudden attitude with her. "How are you not drunk out your mind?! You downed an entire bottle of Moonshine Whisky! And why the rescue if you were just going to berate me afterwards."

Knuckles was outside and looking around. "That's what it was? I thought it was an actual brand. In response to the question that went with it, I have a healing factor that makes it very hard for poison to affect me. Second questions answer, I don't like anyone from the Sand Blasters, so I beat him up. You were just the excuse, and I don't like you that much." He seemed to get his bearings and turned right.

Rouge followed him, angry with his second answer. "Where do you think you're going?!"

Knuckles just kept walking. "To Vanillas where no doubt the others are waiting. But first I'm making a detour to Jack's base of operations. It's time I teach that punk a lesson."

Rouge's jaw dropped. "You're not serious are you?! That's a suicide mission!"

Knuckles stopped and turned to her. "Why do you care? Having a fling with his gold?" He turned back around and continued walking.

Shadow was lost, he had no idea where Vector would have ended up. "This was a bad idea. I'm in the middle of a frozen wasteland with no sign of Vector anywhere!" He continued to trek through the snow shining his lantern ahead through the blizzard. Every now and then he'd catch voices from inside the huts he passed. Most of them were just people calling him crazy. But at the last hut he passed, he heard trouble.

"Look man, I didn't burn your crops!"

"Save it Leatherhead, I saw you breathing fire at the end of the footprint trail!"

Shadow turned towards the hut. _Leatherhead? Fire Breathing? That sounds like Vector._ He ran towards the hut and burst through the door. He saw Vector at scythe point, a large elephant seal at the other end.

Vector looked at Shadow and shouted. "Sup Shadow! I'll be with you in a second." He had built up his bicep muscles, and was sporting several tattoos. He turned to the seal and spoke. "I didn't want to do this, but you've left me no choice." He grabbed the scythe handle and heaved. The elephant seal flew into the air as Vector brought him over his head. "SUPLEX!" He smashed the seal into the floor and stood up. "Don't mess with the wonder from Downunda!"

Shadow dropped his guard and stared at Vector. "What the hell is going on here?! Here I am trying to warn you about giant Eggman Robots, and you are going around Suplexing people?!"

Vector stopped and stared at Shadow. "Eggman robots? What do you mean? I can handle those no problem."

Shadow spoke again, "Powerful, Invulnerable, Eggman Robots."

Vector laughed, "If I learned anything during my training it's that nothing is indestructible, invulnerable, or unbeatable. With your help I can have them down in no time flat."

Shadow stared dumbstruck at Vector. _There's confidence, and there's stupidity. I have no idea which one this counts as._ He followed Vector out of the hut and back into the snow.

Vector grabbed some sticks from the pack on his back. "I borrowed this from an old guy who was just about to throw it into his shed. It's good at holding fire wood." He had set up a small pile of sticks on the ground, and now breathed fire to light them. "That guy I suplexed accused me of burning his crops. But I had just arrived in town when he did, so I tried to defend myself. He got me with a club and I woke up at his hut, tied to a chair. I got free and that's where you came in." He sat down and placed his hand close to the fire.

Shadow sat down across from him. "So we wait?"

Vector nodded. "We wait."

Amy had found Julie easily enough. She was in Casinopolis trying to catch a bus to Cityopolis. Laura was with her, holding her hand tightly. Julie had grown taller, had a more defined body, new tattoos on her right arm, and a new wardrobe. Laura was now 5, dressed in a wool sweater, and loose jeans. When Amy found her and told her what was going on Julie gave her a look and left the bus stop. Now Amy was trying to talk her out of it. "They're Indestructible Julie! As in your pistol won't do anything against them!"

Julie wasn't listening, she had found a tall apartment complex and entered. She walked up to the counter and rang the bell. "Excuse me, can you direct me to Madame Rouge's room? I'm a friend here to drop something off."

The doorman looked at a list and pointed to the elevator. "Fourteenth floor, fifth door on the right." He took out a magazine and began reading.

Julie nodded and headed to the elevator, Amy following behind. Julie picked Laura up and began talking to her. "Mommy is going to go to work for a little bit sweetie. Be good for the babysitter okay?"

Laura nodded and rested her head on her mother's shoulder.

Amy started to say something but the elevator stopped and Julie got off and headed straight to the fifth door on the right. "Julie listen to me!" Amy shouted as she followed Julie.

Julie knocked on the door and a male bat answered. "Hello Crispin."

Crispin jumped a bit when he saw Julie at the door. "Julie! You're back, I see."

Julie handed him Laura with some hesitance. "I need you to look after Laura while I take care of some business. Don't screw this up and I might give you some rings for your troubles." She leaned over and kissed Laura's forehead. "Mommy will be back soon." She turned and let the door close on a dumbstruck Crispin. "Now to take care of those robots."

Amy grabbed her arm and tried to stop her. "JULIE! THEY ARE INDESTRUCTIBLE! WE NEED TO RUN FAR AWAY FROM THEM!"

Julie stopped in front of the elevator and spoke in a very plain voice. "Amy, let go of my arm. I appreciate your concern, but it's not me you should worry about, it's the robots."

Amy let Julie's arm go and started to argue. "Julie, I don't care what weapon you use, it's not going to work on them! They will kill you if you don't run!"

Julie made an annoyed noise and the spike on her left arm extended. "I have a weapon that'll work on anything right here. It is made of Bangamantium, and coated with Diamond particles, meaning it probably will not break on these robots, and it will cut through them no matter what. Now if you want to say another word about how it's not going to work, then you can say it to my backside, cause I'm not going to run away from this. I'm going to fight. " The elevator opened and she got in. "Are you coming, or are you going to chicken out?"

Amy sighed and got in the elevator. "I swear you're worse than Knuckles sometimes."

Julie laughed as the doors closed. "Trust me Amy, Knuckles is far worse than I am."

The desert was vast, and Sonic knew he had taken a wrong turn. On the bright side Maria had called to report that Charmy had returned safely. On the not so bright side, Espio had not returned. "I swear if he's invisible and has been following me since I started looking, I'll run him down!" A wind picked up and tossed sand into the air. He covered his face and pressed on. _I wish I had a cloak right about now. This is going to take forever to wash out._ He spied to figures in the distance walking towards the town he was heading to. "Maybe they've seen Espio around here!" He ran forward catching up rather quickly. His face still covered he shouted over the wind. "Excuse me! Have either of you seen a Chameleon around here?! He's Purple and almost never smiles!" He felt something soft hit his arm and drape over.

A familiar voice came. "Put that on Big Blue, it'll keep the sand out of your fur."

Sonic turned and put the cloak on. "Is that you Rouge? I didn't know you'd be way out here!"

Rouge sighed and dropped back to walk with him. "By all means I shouldn't be. I've been following our Hot Blooded friend here trying to talk him out of attacking Jack Rabbit. But he seems dead set on it, even if it will cause a war in the underground."

Sonic looked at her and asked. "Hot Blooded Friend?"

The other person spoke up, "As in me."

Sonic practically shouted. "Knuckles! Thank god I found you! Listen man, Eggman sending these super strong indestructible robots after you. We're going to retreat until we can think of a plan to stop them, so come with me and help me find Espio and tell him."

Knuckles kept walking. "Nice of old Fat Ass to send a welcoming committee, here I was beginning to think he didn't care. I'll just deal with them after I hand Jack his ass on a silver plater."

Rouge sighed. "Give it up Sonic, he's not listening to anyone right now. I doubt even Julie could talk him out of it."

Sonic's jaw had dropped at how calm they both were about this. "Guys, normally if Eggman were to send an army of robots my way, I'd be okay with it. But these robots are different. I saw them the last time I broke into his base. He may only have three of them, but they are big, they are bad, and the metal they're made of is reinforced with DIAMOND COATING!"

Rouge chuckled. "That explains why he only has three, Diamond Coating is very rare."

Knuckles spoke next, "On this planet at least. Don't worry about it Sonic, I know exactly what to do. Besides, we have them outnumbered. Right Espio?"

Espio faded into visibility on Knuckles right. He was wearing full Ninja garb with an open back. He had been tattooed with black markings like Knuckles on his back. "Right. The others are waiting for transport."

Sonic looked at them confused. "Transport? What do you mean transport?"

Knuckles nodded and spoke. "Good. I'll fill them in when they arrive. And to answer your question Sonic, I called in a favor from a certain Taxi Driver me and Vector helped out of a tight spot once. He should be waiting with the others in the city now."

Sonic's jaw dropped again. "You knew?"

Knuckles nodded again. "I heard it in a bar I stopped at. I sent a communication to the others, and the driver. Espio met up with me in a few minutes. Then little miss sunshine next to you showed up and caused some trouble. I then decided to kick Jack's ass. Espio was in complete agreement on one condition, that I didn't overdo it. Oh we're here." They had reached the city. Knuckles smiled and ran forward.

Sonic shouted and ran after him. "DO YOU EVEN HAVE A PLAN?!" He caught up with Knuckles and saw his determined grin.

Knuckles spoke plainly, "Course I have a plan, it's a brilliant plan. I use that fat prairie dog to open the door, then I kick his ass."

Sonic was confused. "What fat prairie dog?" But when he looked ahead he saw all too well what Knuckles was about to do. "Oh no…"

Knuckles laughed as he grabbed Avery and started swinging him around, knocking out the rest of the Sand Blasters, and then threw him at the door to Jack's office.

Jack stood up and drew his pistol. "ALRIGHT! WHOEVER JUST DID THAT PUT YOUR HANDS WHERE I CAN SEE THEM!"

Knuckles came in with his hands above his head. "Hello Jack, how's business?"

Jack shook as he tried to aim at Knuckles, "No way… you're dead! You've been dead for five years!"

Knuckles laughed, "I'm afraid the reports of my death were greatly exaggerated." He rushed Jack and knocked the gun away. He then proceeded to beat Jack senseless. After finishing he brushed some dirt of his hands and walked out the door. "Nice doing business with you."

Sonic was waiting outside the office, arms crossed. "That wasn't necessary. He's lost a lot of power in five years, doesn't have the hold he used to."

Knuckles walked past him humming a tune. "Oh well, at least there will be no war in the Underground for his spot." He turned onto the street and headed to a Taxi Cab and knocked on the window. "Everyone here Harry?"

The window rolled down and a mangy dingo stuck his head out the window. "They're waiting in that inn over there."

Knuckles handed him a pouch and nodded. "Thank you Harry. I don't expect you to hang around for the fireworks so I'll be seeing you."

Harry took the pouch and said, "Do me a favor, and don't see me. You people are a magnet for trouble!" He drove off leaving Knuckles in the dust.

Knuckles just laughed and headed to the inn. "Isn't he a card? Come on, the others will want to see you." He grabbed Sonic's shoulder and guided him to the inn. "You to Thief, I'm sure the others would like to see you." He said with a hint of sarcasm.

Rouge scoffed, "I've been trying to make nice with you people for a while now! Julie and I are good friends now!"

Sonic could tell Knuckles wasn't listening to her as he opened the door and Sonic walked in to see everyone. "Whoa! I didn't expect to see you all here!" He looked around, not only were Amy, Shadow, Maria, Omega and Saffron there, but the others who hadn't shown up at Vanillas, including Tails.

Tails walked up to Sonic, he was a bit taller, wearing a pilots gloves, jacket and white pants. He also had a scarf, longer bangs, and a pair of glasses with a few oddities hanging on the sides. "Sonic, it's good to see you again. I didn't expect the location to change and a battle to be approaching, but I guess that's our life."

Julie walked up and clapped Sonic on the shoulder, "Nice to see you get some inches on you Shorty."

Sonic went flush, Julie had always been taller than him, and she was picking now to rub it in. "Julie, now's not the time! We need a strategy."

Shadow grunted. "I agree, this is an enemy that we've never faced before, and have little to no intel on."

Vector shouted, "I got your strategy, make the thing go boom! It's not that hard!"

Knuckles laughed and shouted in turn, "Nicely phrased Vector! I'm with you, we just do what we do best and we'll win no problem!"

Sonic pulled him aside, "What do you think you're saying. Five years ago you were somber and serious about getting stronger. Now you're acting like a giddy fool and charging blindly into battle. Even Julie seems to be in on it." Sonic added seeing Julie raise a glass in favor of Vector's plan.

Knuckles laughed and said, "I'm about to have an old friend return to me. I'm about to have the whole Chaotix roster back. And on top of that, I'm a crap ton stronger than I was five years ago. Same with you. Just relax and treat this as a warm-up, the real challenge hasn't even shown up yet." He walked away and joined in with Vector and the other Chaotix in a merry celebration.

Sonic sighed and pulled the others into a huddle. "So, do we go along with the people who are obviously suffering from space madness, or do we come up with a plan?"

Shadow spoke up, "Here's what I say we do, let them do whatever, while we make a calculated strike at the robots. If what we've been filled in on is true then all we need is something sharp enough to cut diamond. Lucky for us we have these." He dropped a few swords on the ground. "GUN gave these to us in case we needed to fight anyone in diamond coated armor. I got a few more since Omega would be firing them from a launcher."

Tails picked one up and examined it. "Diamond particle infused into the blade, clever. And a damn sight easier than diamond coating."

Amy took the blade off one and attached it to the end of her hammer. "This should do."

Shadow nodded. "Anyone not game with this?" No one objected. He smiled and nodded at Sonic. "Then we'll follow our leader into this battle."

Sonic nodded back and looked at everyone. "This is going to be intense people, we're going out to the desert to meet the robots and prevent any damage to this city. Eggman probably has a lot of Egg Pawns following the other robots, so we'll need to take care of them as well. Remember we fight together, help out anyone in trouble and make sure that no troop goes into the city." Seeing everyone nod he smiled. "Let's do it to it!"

The winds had died down since the afternoon, and the desert had grown cold with the night. The troop of fighters stood tall, each ready for battle. There was no sound from any of them as they watched the approaching Robot Horde.

Sonic saw the three giant mechs towering over the rest of the bots. They were bulky, but they had no ranged weapons. "This just got a little easier, the big ones don't have guns." He said to the rest of them

Knuckles gave an affirmative grunt and removed his desert cloak. "They won't last long."

At last the Robots got within range and the fighters sprang into action. Shadow took out several Egg Pawns with a slash from his sword. Amy had extended her hammers handle into a two handed staff and was twirling it around, taking advantage of the hammer itself, and the blade at the other end. Tails was utilizing some impressive combat maneuvers, and even managed to take off an Egg Pawns head with his tails. Sonic himself was doing some of his usual tricks, leg sweeps, homing attacks, and the like.

Knuckles shouted out, "Come on people let's see some fireworks!" Before slamming his fists into the ground and causing a burst of molten rocks to erupt from the ground.

Shadow smirked, "Fireworks huh?" His markings started to glow and he began to speed up, going in a circle. "Chaos…" Egg Pawns were being drawn inwards to him. "BLAST!" A large explosion came from his body and set off a chain of explosions in the nearby Egg Pawns.

Sonic created a whirlwind in the middle of a large group of Egg Pawns and sent it forward. "Let's try this out, CHAOS CONTROL!" the flow of time slowed around Sonic, allowing him to attack the Egg Pawns in the whirlwind one at a time. When time returned to normal the all exploded turning the whirlwind into a flaming vortex for a minute. "Now that's what I call Fireworks."

One of the giant Mechs was moving its foot to crush Tails, who was in the middle of a large grouping of Egg Pawns. "Sonic! I need some help over here!"

Sonic moved to help but Julie cut him off. "Julie?"

Julie hopped onto one of the Egg Pawns and launched herself at Tails. She grabbed his hand in midflight and launched off another Egg Pawn as the foot came down on the Egg Pawns Tails had been fighting. She tossed Tails in the air and shouted, "You're Welcome."

Sonic was slightly impressed. "I could've done it faster though." He said while taking out a spear wielding Egg Pawn.

After they had taken out the Egg Pawns, avoiding the attacks of the giant mechs all the while, they regrouped.

Shadow turned to Sonic, "We split up into two groups. You take Amy and Tails, I'll take Rouge, Maria, and Omega."

Sonic nodded. "Right, we'll take the one on the left. Come one guys, let's go!"

Knuckles and the Chaotix were focusing on the middle robot. "Vector, take out that leg!" Knuckles shouted while attacking the shoulder.

Vector shouted up to him. "Consider it done!" Vector took a device out from his pack and slipped it over his hand. "DIAMOND CUTTER GUANTLET!" He punched the leg joint of the bot and jumped to the other on as a shower of green energy flew out of it. "KNUX, THEY GOT EMERALDS IN THEM!"

Julie used her arm spike blade to slice an opening in the chest. "Acknowledged! Retrieving gem now!" Gripping tight with her right arm she reached into the opening and grabbed the emerald. Since it had a current running through it she was burned slightly, but she managed to pull it out in time.

The robot halted and fell. Without the Emerald powering it, it couldn't even stand. Espio grabbed Knuckels off the shoulder while Charmy flew to grab Julie.

"That was dangerous Charmy, I could of made it myself." Julie sputtered as the breeze pelted her face. "Slow down a little, I can barely talk!"

Charmy slowed down. "Sorry Julie, but I didn't want to get hit with the things head."

Meanwhile Sonic was running his sword along the robot as he ran up it. _This is to easy! Maybe Knuckles was right about this being a warm-up._ His Sword caught on the Robots eye and he jumped to the top of the head. Out the corner of his eye he saw the Chaotix had fell their robot. "Alright! One down two to go guys!" He jumped down to the left shoulder as the robot brought its fist down on its head. "About as smart as an Eggman Robot these things are."

Amy called up to him, "SONIC! THE EMERALD IS IN THE THINGS CHEST! BE CAREFUL THOUGH, IT'S ACTING MORE PROTECTIVE OF IT AFTER SEEING THE FIRST ONE FALL!"

Tails flew up to him, "I have an idea, let's take care of this like we did Eggman back at Marble Garden! If we can cut through its defenses I can probably grab the emerald with my extending claw." He said pulling a device from his coat pocket.

Sonic nodded and grabbed his hand. "Take us down Captain Prower, let's show this thing what we're made of! Amy, try and slow it down while we get the emerald!"

As they flew lower Tails saw Omega unload an entire salvo of napalm on the mechs legs. "We've almost won Sonic, just need to reclaim the emeralds! Shadow almost has his!"

Sonic looked over and got a smirk on his face. "Well we can't be in second to him can we?"

Tails looked at him. "But the Chaotix already have one."

Sonic shook his head, "They're not in this match. They were off planet for five years. It's time to prove I'm the better hedgehog and you're the better flyer!"

Amy shouted up at them, "I TOLD YOU IT'S NOT THE TIME FOR PISSING CONTEST!"

Tails ignored both of them and flew in close to the robot. Swinging his arm he launched Sonic close to the Robot, who was holding his left hand in front of the emeralds location.

Sonic held his sword up and began spinning rapidly. Once he hit he began to cut through the hand. It was slow going for a while, and he had to jump back twice to have Tails throw him again to get momentum. But at last he cut through the hand and sliced a hole in front of where the Emerald was. "NOW!"

Tails pressed a button and the claw launched out and closed around the emerald. He recalled it and grabbed Sonic as he flew away from the soon to be collapsing robot. "Amy, we've done it!"

Amy smiled and ducked out of the way of the falling bot. Seeing Shadow grab the emerald from the other as she rolled into a safe area. "WE WIN! SHADOW HAS THE OTHER EMERALD! IT'S ALL OVER!"

There was a small celebration at Vanilla's that evening. Now that everyone was back, and three of the Emeralds were safe, all felt well in the world.

Sonic had escaped the festivities and was sitting on the balcony. _It's nice to have everyone back together after all this. It was kinda boring without them._

Amy had snuck up after she saw him leave and was standing in the doorway. "Do you mind if I join you Sonic?"

Sonic shook his head and put his arm around her as she moved closer. "I missed you during my independent training. And when you came back I wasn't able to tell you that."

Amy smiled and laid her head on his shoulder, "It's okay, I knew how you felt from the look in your eyes."

Tails cleared his throat, "Am I interrupting?"

Sonic and Amy jumped at the noise and turned to see Tails was holding an ancient looking book. "What's that?" Sonic asked.

Tails set it on the table next to them and opened it. "It's a book of blueprints, really advanced ones. But that's not what I want you to look at, what I want you to look at is the original owners name." He pointed to a grouping of symbols.

Sonic looked at Tails, "Tails, not everyone has Ancient Languages as an elective in high school."

Tails shook his head, "I know it's in Old Mobian, but doesn't it look familiar to you?" He pointed at the first symbol. "I know this is can be likened to a K. And the last one an S. Eight Letters, starting with a K and ending with an S. Huh?"

Amy picked up on it, "This book belonged to Knuckles, so?"

Tails turned a few pages until he found one were there was one missing. "This page is missing, and the previous page described this blueprint as one of the most dangerous. If someone stole it and can understand it, then they have a massive weapon at their disposal!"

Knuckles came in laughing. "What are you all doing out here? The party is inside. Wow it sounds weird when I say that."

Tails ran over to him and held up the book, "Knuckles, we need to know, what was the missing page in this book about? You know, just in case whoever stole it tries to set against us."

Knuckles looked at the page, reading it over and calling upon his memory. At last he laughed. "No need to worry, old Fat Ass will build another one of those."

Tails looked at him flabbergasted. "What do you mean?"

Knuckles put his hand on Tails shoulder and patted it. "We just beat three of them tonight! The robots that Eggman sent to attack us. I thought they looked familiar. Come back inside, and let those two over there have some privacy." He looked up and Sonic and Amy and winked as he led Tails back to the sitting room.

Sonic felt his face get hot, and saw Amy blushing to his side. "W-Well… *ahem* What were we saying?"

Amy leaned over and kissed Sonic for what felt like the first time in their lives. She felt him give in and kiss back, and for a few minutes they held themselves like this. When they broke apart she hugged him and whispered in his ear, "Welcome back Sonic, I love you."


End file.
